10 States With the Highest Property Taxes in America

This is about the time of the year, every year, where I wish there was a rewind button. November and December are filled with holiday fun, extra days off, and getting together with friends and family. Then January hits and "wham!" -- all of your credit card bills from December become due and Uncle Sam comes knocking at your door to get you to do your taxes by April 15. Happy New Year, right?

Taxes are an unwelcome but necessary process that the majority of Americans must endure to ensure that our government and military have the proper funding to continue to operate. In addition to paying the salaries of our elected officials and armed forces, taxes also help fund social programs like Social Security and Medicare, as well as provide funding for schools, prisons, and clinical research projects, just to name a few other funding aspects.

America's most hated taxWhat we learned in November, though, after combing through a poll from Gallup is that not all taxes are created equally among Americans. In other words, some taxes are hated more than others. The Gallup poll asked respondents to list their most-hated tax out of a list of five possible tax choices, which were then compiled into the results that we looked at here.

Long story short, property taxes came out on top as America's most hated taxby a long shot, with 42% of all votes. The reasoning is pretty simple. For many homeowners, their property tax bill can be higher than what they owe in federal and state income taxes, making it their largest annual expense. In addition, because home prices have fluctuated so wildly over the previous five years, there's no guarantee that homeowners are paying an accurate property tax on their home's assessed value. Finally, there's also no uniform rhyme, reason, or formula to property taxes as it's dealt with on a county-by-county basis, making the opaqueness of the issue even more frustrating for taxpayers.

Yet property taxes themselves make up a large chunk of revenue for individual counties. According to a study (link opens a PDF) released in mid-November by Benjamin Harris and Brian David Moore from the Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center, 34.6% of all local revenue is generated by property taxes, with local sales tax making up a good chunk of the remaining revenue. Without these funds, many locales would simply be unable to update their infrastructure, support schools, or pay for other basic needs such as a police or fire department.

10 states with the highest property taxes Today, I want to take a closer look at the 10 states with the highest property taxes in America, for a few reasons. Obviously, knowledge is power, so understanding why certain regions of the country tax higher could help homebuyers make a more educated decision about their home purchase. More importantly, though, as we near the heart of tax season, there are some steps you can take as a homeowner that you may be forgetting, which could help save you money. Those tips would be especially useful in states that have the highest property taxes.

Without further ado, here are the 10 states with the highest mean property taxes, according to the Tax Policy Center's study:

State

2012 Mean Property Taxes Paid

New Jersey

$7,318

New Hampshire

$5,230

Connecticut

$5,200

New York

$5,040

Illinois

$4,469

Vermont

$4,328

Rhode Island

$3,820

Massachusetts

$3,805

Wisconsin

$3,530

Alaska

$3,290

Source: Tax Policy Center.

As you can see, geography can play a sizable role in property taxes. Because New England is predominantly developed and there's only a finite amount of land available, property values and property taxes are generally high in the region. Infrastructure needs also come into play, with higher population density areas needing far more revenue generation to maintain roads and bridges. This is primarily why you see almost every New England state on the list, as well as Illinois and Wisconsin.

But, this list is also a bit deceiving because it doesn't factor in property value. By that I mean you can purchase an identical house in one locale that could set you back $1 million that, in a different state or county, may sell for one-quarter of that amount or less. Everything depends on location, infrastructure, the availability of land, population density, and demand.

Let's have another look at these figures, but this time let's look at it as the 2012 property tax as a percentage of home value.

State

2012 Mean Property Taxes Paid

Property Tax as a Percent of Home Value

New Jersey

$7,318

2.32%

New Hampshire

$5,230

2.18%

Connecticut

$5,200

1.88%

New York

$5,040

1.68%

Illinois

$4,469

2.28%

Vermont

$4,328

1.62%

Rhode Island

$3,820

1.67%

Massachusetts

$3,805

1.19%

Wisconsin

$3,530

2.07%

Alaska

$3,290

1.28%

Source: Tax Policy Center.

While you can still see that these 10 states all pay cumulative property taxes well above the national average, property taxes as a percentage of home value that select homeowners pay can be much higher from one state to the next.

Massachusetts residents, for instance, may pony up $3,805 for property taxes on their home, but at only 1.19% of their home's value it means Massachusetts homes are often worth a lot. By comparison, Wisconsin residents paid 265 fewer dollars, but they had to pay 88 basis points more on their homes than residents in Massachusetts in 2012! It usually all comes down to a state's need for infrastructure and educational improvements.

How understanding your property taxes can put more money in your pocketWhile highlighting the 10 states with the highest property taxes in America can be fun for a numbers guy like myself, the real fun comes when I tell you that there are two commonly overlooked ways to save yourself money when it comes to property taxes.

The first method might seem like common sense, but you wouldn't believe how many people, especially new homeowners, forget that you can claim your property taxes paid as a deduction. I know it's a bit odd that you can claim a deduction on a tax, but the overall goal by the IRS is to ensure that you don't pay income tax on money going to pay your property taxes.

Now one tricky aspect that can sometimes trip up homeowners that you'll want to keep a close eye on is that you can only deduct the amount of property tax paid to your county each year. This means for those of you like myself who have their property taxes lumped in with your mortgage payment and shuffled into an escrow account on a monthly basis, you'll want to ensure you're only claiming what the escrow account pays in property taxes on your behalf in a given year and not necessarily what you put into the escrow account in a given year. It's a minor error that can sometimes have big implications.

The second method, which is often overlooked, is the ability of a homeowner to request a reassessment of his or her property value. Because property values directly correlate to property taxes, if you feel your home is worth considerably less than your currently assessed value, it would be in your best interest to further investigate whether the county assessor has levied an accurate value on your home.

The easiest way of going about this is first to acquaint yourself with your county's property tax code laws, which can often be found online or at your county's assessor's office. Once you understand the process, you can view the assessment for your own property to look for mistakes. According to Pete Sopp, a spokesman for the National Taxpayers Union in an interview with MSN, the inaccuracy rate on assessments is anywhere from 30% to 50%, depending on the region. Most of these errors are minor, but the larger ones can result in hefty savings. After reviewing your assessment, you should check out similar homes that have sold in the area to determine whether your home could actually be sold for its assessed value. If the figures don't add up, it could be time to make an appeal to your county's assessor.

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Fool contributor Sean Williams has no material interest in any companies mentioned in this article. You can follow him on CAPS under the screen name TMFUltraLong, track every pick he makes under the screen name TrackUltraLong, and check him out on Twitter, where he goes by the handle @TMFUltraLong.

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Most of the states have one thing in common -- the governor and/or the lawmakers are Democrat and are pro-union.

Connecticut has high taxes all around (income, sales, and estate taxes in addition to property taxes) and is ranked next to last in fiscal responsibility with $52 billion in unfunded liabilities. Not a good state to live in.

It seems like your explanation for which states have high taxes isn't quite right. The Northeast states have a lot of residents - IN A SMALL AREA. So they have a lot of people paying tax, and they have more people per mile of road than a state like Alaska. This is actually a reason why their taxes should be lower than other states.

What a waste of time by comparing apples to oranges. Why not do one survey that accomplishes a cost to home value as in the second list with all states? Most of the states listed would fall off. Florida has some of the highest property taxes on the planet thanks to our Republicans in the state government. The article only seems to stir up another we vs. them in the political arena. Was this the real result wanted from posting such a misleading survey?

While NJ has the highest property taxes by far the reason is simple CORRUPTION...We have a an income tax that was started in 1976 to help keep property taxes low the income tax was collected and was supposed to be distributed back to all towns depending on how much was paid by the residents of those towns .But the democrats hijacked the money for the urban districts (Camden,Newark) and gave nothing or very little to the towns .to pay for the schools the towns had to keep raising taxes ....welcome to corrupt NJ ...

Average $7,318 in NJ is a joke, my taxes went from $5,500 to $12,000 per year, $3,000 a quarter in 8 years. Luckily i sold and am now banking my cash and leaving he state soon. Oh, i forgot to mention there is a 46 billion dollar underfunded pension bomb ready to blow in NJ very soon. I would not want to be a homeowner in NJ when that happens. Corruption at it's best.

in ny state we pay school tax and property tax school tax is 3xs property tax . nycity i think pays school tax in a different way than the rest of the state . if one does not pay school tax the county will seize and auction your home . if u own propety in 2 different school districts ,u must pay tax in both but only allowed to vote in one that u actually live in . what about no taxation without representation?

There is a solution. It is called a tax rate by a factor that is applied to the property. It takes a bit to describe so bear with me.

Every taxing entity establishes a tax rate. This tax rate is established by supervisors of the taxing entity. If your property has a factor of 10 you pay 10 times the tax rate. A factor of 100 results in a tax of 100 times the rate. This method of taxation is what we do today except that the factor changes every few years and is commonly known as the assessed value.

The factor would be calculated once and rarely changed. Every property has a factor that is mathematically calculated using acreage, square footage under roof times stories or floors and property usage.

Acreage (i.e. Lot Size) never changes except by subdivision that is entered into public record.

Square footage under roof does not change except by building permit.

Property usage doesn't change without notice.

Usage can be defined as agricultural, residential, retail, office and manufacturing. There can be sub categories of each. (e.g. Residential single and multiple)

There are two huge advantages to this type of system. First if the voters don't like the tax rate of a particular taxing entity the supervisors can be voted out.

The second and monumental advantage for this type of system is that, realistically, the factor never changes. It doesn't matter what your former neighbors did with their property your factor never changes.

The whole concept of taxation based upon perceived value is gone. The problem with perceived value is that the value is only accurate at the moment the property is transferred.

The reason for the factor method can best be described as: Two identical homes, "A" and "B", are purchased new in a new subdivision.

The home owner of home "A" does nothing to their home. The home owner of home "B" finishes the attic into a home office or den, a game room and a bed room. Then homeowner "B" sells their home. Obviously the sale price reflects the improvements to the home. The taxes for both homes reflect the sale price of home "B". The improvements made by home owner "B" are "unknown" to the assessor. Welcome to the world of assessed valuation.

This is something that all Americans need to consider as a realistic method of supporting our government services with fair taxation.

I live in PA and my property taxes are about 1.8% of the value of my home, or about the middle of the pack for this list. Just identifying the States with the highest absolute taxes is meaningless. The second list, looking at tax as a percentage of home value, needs to be compared with the rest of the States. Some of the percentages there seem relatively low.

The articles states that "you can still see that these 10 states all pay cumulative property taxes well above the national average.." No we can't. In order to "see" that we would have to know what the national average is as percentage of home value. I suspect that it is probably higher than what the average MA tax is as a percentage.

I can't believe this guy had to even mention you can only claim the amount of TAXES you pay rather than the amount of money you pay in escrow with your mortgage. But, 90% of Americans are truly brain dead. Funny thing is, that 90% won't read this article!!

I grew up in California, while the taxes are high they are low in comparison of the home value. I live in Connecticut now and pay the same as my sister in law in San Jose, except her house is worth 2.5 times mine. My wife and I were unable to have children, but we pay for every extra curricular activity the town can think up. Those with children, who are really the biggest burden on the school system, (I just mean that monetarily) get tax breaks for having kids. I am all for paying for education, however I am forced to pay for the football team, also. These kids then get scholarships after their parents have received the tax break. Since someone had to pay for all this, it falls on the middle class, especially those without children.

In Harris county, in Houston, the tax rate is 3% of the value of the property. They aggressively asses property at market value. That is much higher than the tax rate in New jersey. I suggest that Motley fool revise their article to be more accurate.

jdebug was on the right path - I've lived in a number of states - you have to look at property tax, state income tax and state sales tax combined. TX has some steeper property rates and 8+% sales tax in big cities, but no state income tax. Alaska is shown in the top 10 property tax list - but has no statewide sales tax nor an income tax - and they pay you approx $1,000 per person per year to live there (Permanent Fund Dividend). The author of this article just didn't wan to do his homework to write an article that gives the full picture. A well written article would do a table showing the 3 taxes and a total for the average resident.

As several OTHER people have commented, Harris county (Houston area) has a tax rate of 3% and higher! So if you retire, you are still paying as high a state tax rate as if you were working full time in another state which charges an income tax. What the hell is up with the internet writers trying to convince everyone to move to Texas? 1000 people a day move here, find out they hate it and leave within 2 years. Meanwhile, we are dealing with overcrowding, rolling blackouts, water shortages, schools with trailers for classrooms and 3 hour commutes to get 30 miles. Public transportation? None unless you want to ride a bus next to a gang member for 5 hours. Heat? try 116 with 100% humidity. Jobs? yeah and they are all low paying because you compete with the cheap Mexican labor.

I live southwest of Houston, Tx., in Fort Bend County, a republican stronghold. I pay 3.7% in property taxes per year. Perhaps the republicans are fooling everyone. According to your information this would be the highest property taxes in the US. While there are no State income taxes in Texas, they really get you with the high property taxes that pay for one of the worst schools in the country.

Gee - all democratic run states, and most in New England. As being unlucky enough to have the pleasure to live in Massachusetts, I know how this all democrat legislature just runs up more and more bills. This week our stupid governor who is on his way out - and who is looking at being in the White House aster his bud die gives it up, put in a new tax on soda and candy bars. The moral police. Then he cut back on funding to towns. And yes, our taxes went up a LOT this year!

In Texas what do you get for that 3%? Do they pay higher wages than other states? I am just trying to find the justification for the High Taxes. Also are there any older people that own houses there. How could they afford it?

We live in a poor pocket of Iowa, in an 1800 sq. ft home built in 1980 on a small town lot. Taxes are OVER $4000 a year, and that is with the homesteader's exemption. We appealed, but it did little good. Home is worth $180,000. Argh....

I bought my hose in 1999 for around 423,000. My property taxes started at 1% but by now my taxes have increased to 6,300.00 By those figures California is definitely on that list however the numbnut who wrote it failed to include it.

Don't believe the happy talk coming out of the White House, Federal Reserve and Treasury Department when it comes to the real unemployment rate and the true “Misery Index.” Because, according to an influential Wall Street advisor, the figures are a fraud.

In a memo to clients provided to Secrets, David John Marotta calculates the actual unemployment rate of those not working at a sky-high 37.2 percent, not the 6.7 percent advertised by the Fed, and the Misery Index at over 14, not the 8 claimed by the government.

Marotta, who recently advised those worried about an imploding economy to get a gun, said that the government isn't being honest in how it calculates those out of the workforce or inflation, the two numbers used to get the Misery Index figure.

“The unemployment rate only describes people who are currently working or looking for work,” he said. That leaves out a ton more.

“Unemployment in its truest definition, meaning the portion of people who do not have any job, is 37.2 percent. This number obviously includes some people who are not or never plan to seek employment. But it does describe how many people are not able to, do not want to or cannot find a way to work. Policies that remove the barriers to employment, thus decreasing this number, are obviously beneficial,” he and colleague Megan Russell in their new investors note from their offices in Charlottesville, Va.

They added that “officially-reported unemployment numbers decrease when enough time passes to discourage the unemployed from looking for work. A decrease is not necessarily beneficial; an increase is clearly detrimental.”

Then there is the Misery Index, which is a calculation based in inflation and unemployment, both numbers the duo say are underscored by the government. He said that the Index doesn’t properly calculate how Uncle Sam is propping up the economy with bond purchases and other actions.

“These tricks, along with a host of other dubious accounting schemes, underreport inflation by about 3 percent,” they wrote, adding that the official inflation rate is just 1.24 percent.

“Today, the Misery Index would be 7.54 using official numbers,” they wrote. But if calculations tabulating the full national unemployment including discouraged workers, which is 10.2 percent, and the historical method of calculating inflation, which is now 4.5 percent, ‘the current misery index is closer to 14.7, worse even than during the Ford administration.”

Wisconsin is Republican and anti union , Walker has taken the state from surplus to deficit with tax cuts. The economic growth is bottom five and unemployment rate is over seven, Their neigbor Minnesota has surplus, strong unions, strong economic growth and a 4.5 unemployment rate.(Democratic governor and legislature)

I have lived in Wisconsin for the last 28 years. My taxes are $3300 on a $200,000 house. The public schools are in the top ten in our state. I appreciate all that Scott Walker has done for us in this fine state. Also, we have one of the best business universities in the midwest. Not to mention the D-3 National Football Team Champions. (2007, 2009, 2010, 2011, & 2013. Go Warhawks!!!

Enough with the red state vs. blue state crap, please. Are we USA or not? TX, CA (Terminator), FL, PA, are all or recently were red states, and all have some of the highest property taxes in the country, so enough with the propaganda. Corporations run governments, period--both parties, while we fight about red vs. blue! They laugh, as they own BOTH.

The Texas property taxes are very deceptive. The actual property tax is low but what they do is that they tax you with a municipal/school district tax that is usually equal to the property tax rate. So Texas can say they have a 1 to 2% tax rate but in reality you pay 3 to 4% on the final bill. It's really a racket and discriminates against couples who own land but never had kids in school or whose kids graduated from school many years ago.

If you are retired you can move to somewhere where the property taxes are low or nonexistent. I don't pay any property tax and I have a pretty expensive home. Of course I live outside of the USA. If you earn higher than normal wages which is related to the state where you live then It might be worth it to pay high property taxes. For retirees on a low fixed income property taxes can be a real burden. Since most of the property tax money goes for education and retirees no longer have any kids in school it is an especially bad deal for them.

Seems to me that Wisconsin was all over the news not too long ago for their Republican governor and his union busting practices. Since rules for taxation, particularly property taxes, were set up decades ago, unless you know specifically when this was done and who controlled the legislature (where laws are really made, not governor's offices), then political name calling and accusations along party lines really isn't very accurate-or useful- is it? Enough Tea Party/Big Oil/Koch brothers financed name calling and fear mongering. Decisiveness is destroying our country from the inside out. Let's start acting like grown ups and work for the common good.

Well, a lot of info here some good some useless. I have some experience with this subject as I am the real estate appraiser for the county were I live. I may be mistaken but seldom are real estate taxes deductable. Here in NC where I live, property is taxed at 100% of assessed value. The assessed value it set every eight years. During those eight years the assessed value cannot be changed due to economic changes such as the downturn we have experienced. Which means that it is quite possible that your tax assessed value may be greater than your actual market value. On the other hand if the economy of the area grows and values go up. Then you may have an actual market value greater than your assessed value. There are a few things you can do to help with your assessed value. One, ask for a copy of your tax record on your property. This would show you how your property's value is calculated. Check a few things. Is the size of the property correct? Is there anything on your record that is incorrect. If so contact your local tax office and let them know. However, take this action carefully. If you have something on your property that has not been reported to the tax office and they find it, then your value could actually go up! I tell people when I visit that I can be sure of one of three things will happen when I visit your property. Your value will go up, your value will stay the same, or your value will go down. We have a period each year when a property owner can ask for a review of their property. We are in the midst of doing that right now. Contact your local tax office and talk with one of the staff. I appreciate a taxpayer coming in and asking about their property. Its their property and their tax money and it is my job to help explain the process and work with them to make things as accurate as possible. I really like my job and like to help people with their taxes. There are a few people who hate me at sight but I deal with it. I am just a normal guy doing a rather unpopular job. Check with your local tax office. I am sure that they would be glad to help.

Thank you Karen for bring up the fact WI is run by a republican governor and a republican congress. Also you correct about have your property properly assessed. I had mine reassessed and m bill went down over $100 and it will go down again next year. I live in Illinois and while at times I wish Chicago was in a different state, my real estate taxes have been reasonable thanks to my township commission who made sure we were not unfairly punished for a northern cities problems.

I live in Texas, pay under 1% on a $400,000 house. How? Live outside an incorporated area. Property taxes cover city, school, county, water district, community college, hospital, etc. City and school are the biggies, so the amount saved is significant. Remember, Texas property taxes rates may be high, but housing is cheap.

The only way to do this properly is to calculate property taxes, sales taxes and state income taxes and determine the percentage paid in taxes. Singling out one specific tax is misleading. Covemaster, all I can say is, when I was in the Army I couldn't wait to get back to Texas. There's no way I'd leave no matter how cheap the taxes are somewhere else.

Live an learn. One daughter with a home in California valued at 150,000 dollars with property tax 1,800 a year. Second daughter looked to buy a home in Jersey after returning from the War. A home valued at 150,000 dollars with property tax 5,900 dollars a year in 2009. She did not buy the house. Now the same NJ home has an increase in property tax due to Christie spending and the rate will be increase in 2014.

I live in New Jersey, Voorhees Township in Camden County. I paid $176,000 for my house in 2004. It's currently worth about $165,000. My RE Taxes are $5500 a year. It's absolutely criminal. This doesn't include the Camden County Municipal Authority Tax which is another $300 a year. Instead of 2.32% of home value they are gouging me fro 4%. I do get a small tax rebate if I have poverty income in any particular year.

Why are the taxes high in New Jersey, because all these stupid municipalities don't want to share services. I know you could say to me why did I choose to live in New Jersey. I answer to you any number of reasons. Don't blame the RE taxes on Christie. They were here long before he was installed in office. It's impossible to reform the state into an efficient model. How do you get hundreds of small municipalities to agree to anything. How do you negotiate less money spent on schools or lower salaries to people working in government. How do you stop wasteful spending. This isn't a state with high unemployment. It's not California where the state ran out of money. Until people start leaving the state in droves nothing will chase. It would take a mass exodus with thousands of houses going up for sale. You think the people who work in New York City are going to abandon the bedroom communities in New Jersey. I hate that people around the country are only paying $1500 in taxes for same valued house as me

People that think blue states are better for taxes, living etc. are delusional. I live in IL and property taxes on a $150k home is around 4k. My father who lives in Orlando, Fl. pays around $4,500 on a 500k home plus gets garbage pick up in his taxes. Fl. has no state taxes where I pay some of the highest taxes in the nation for owning my own business. The teachers pension fund is underfunded by $17 Billion. It is funny because the retired teachers/state employees etc. a lot of them leave the state with their retirement pay for cheaper tax areas in the country so they don't even put back into the economy of the state because they don't live here. The state will file for bankruptcy someday because the state is to far gone to save just like Calif. One day you wake up from kicking the can down the road so long and there is no money. Welcome to the version of Lehman Brothers!

I live in Austin Texas. Property value = $255,000 and pay over $6,000 in property taxes. In my area schools are HORRIBLE, I'm talking getting shut down bad. If I want to move to an area with good schools and same value of home in Austin then my taxes will easily be over $8,000. I would love to see a article that breaks down the top 20 largest cities. Texas didn't make this list because the state is so big and the poor areas help to level out all four of the major cities.

jimmychurch mentioned in his post that the government is lying about unemployment. A good place to check this out is shadowstats.com. This guy calculates unemployment and inflation using the parameters that were used before Bill Clinton changed to the European method of calculating these statistics. Of course GW Bush, and B Obama continued with the deceptive method. So here we are.

I live here in Alaska, we have no State or City Taxes and recieve an annual PFD from the State, which every citzen including children. Nice place to live especially right now where we are having warmer temperatures than most of the lower 48.

I live in northeast Texas. Near Louisiana and Arkansas. Many folks work in Texas, but live in the other state. Property taxes here run 3 times the other states for same valuation and kind of home. Also by working in Texas they avoid some income tax.

My home is appraised at $200k. Property tax from city, school, county, and college district runs $4200 per year. Of course this tax must be paid even if you are at poverty level income.

Another thing in Texas are exemptions. Take for example homestead. This varies by taxing entity. Mine is only 10k. Yet in Dallas it is up to 65k. This again can be granted by a taxing entity or not. So the county may grant this and the hospital district not grant it.

The property tax situation in Texas is unfair and just plain STINKS !

Every time the legislature tries to change it, the cities lobby against the change. If a change should pass. There is always a special local vote/city council clause to exceed the state maximum percentage.

NJ may have the highest property taxes but it also has the BEST schools nationwide. 80% of my property tax goes towards the local school systems. My kids were able to graduate high school with 16 and 24 college credits through AP classes. I know kids who graduated with 60 college credits from our high school. We get kids into the Ivy's, Stanford, MIT, Duke, etc. with scholarships. 99% of the kids graduate and go on to college. A few join the military.

Yeah, it's high, but it's worth it. States with low property taxes tend to have graduation rates as low as 50%. Really? Less than half the kids can graduate high school?

In my home state of Virginia we tax just about everything but at a low rate...including food, and gas..this does have the advantage of a very broad tax base...I know NY and PA for example don't tax food, clothing, or books..,and NH has no income or sales tax...also as these states lose more and more tax payers to Southern states(or formerly Southern as Virginia with it's governor from Upstate NY and a new attitude of expanding government programs and spending) they have to keep increasing taxes on a dwindling tax base..

In Colorado where I live, property taxes seem relatively reasonable, but of course it depends where one lives. Population growth in some counties is the fastest in the country. On our house they're about 0.63% and we live in a school district that's built something like two high schools, a couple of middle schools and a fair number of elementary schools over the last 20 years, so the property taxes going to schools is a large percentage of the total. The city and county governments basically run on sales tax which caused great distress during the recent recession when car sales tanked. The income tax rate is 4.63% of the federal gross adjusted income on the 1040 form with subtraction for charitable contributions above $500, income on US government interest and an income deduction for up to $24,000 in retirement income for each person of a married couple. Our sales tax is 7.63% which is divided between the state, the city and the county.

My point is that what really needs to be looked at is not just property tax but total taxes - property, sales and income - as a % of household income. And you can't leave out renters because the landlord pays property taxes from the rent income.

What upsets me on taxes more than anything is all those levies the counties want in addition to the property taxes. A lot of homeowners get stuck with levies that absolutely no benefit to your location what so ever. This is in addition to your property taxes. Or they stick you with an additional gas tax to fund their pet project over in one corner of the state that only they use.

This article is completely misleading. What should be measured is the amount PAID in property taxes annually. As many posters have pointed out, some areas add additional fees/local taxes thus skewing the picture. If you visit the Tax Policy Center website you will see an article on 2013 Residential Property Taxes by County, based on what property owners ACTUALLY paid. It puts Texas at second highest in the country, barely behind New Jersey. When I retired several years ago I looked at retiring to El Paso but once I saw the property tax rates I moved to New Mexico instead. Sure, they have an income tax but very low property taxes. I pay less in total taxes, which is what really needs to be measured.

Just about right for Rhode Island. Thirty- nine school districts in 1200 square miles. No jobs, no new industry, sanctuary state and 100% public financing of all these programs on the backs of the homeowner..Summers are nice though. lol

dogjudge- you may want to get your facts straight on Scott Walker. He has created significant job growth, even while dems attempt to prevent it. Dems know fully well that if the massive tax reduction at all levels of income he is proposing, combined with an incredible budget surplus, no loss of vital services, the highest bond rating a state can have, fully funded pensions and continues to happen and pass...dems will vanish from wiscosin forever. Can't wait

The only reason California is not on this list ( as they are on every other list for high taxes) is because the people rebelled here decades ago and passed Prop 13. Ever since that time, the Democrats in this state have been scheming and plotting how to overturn it. Well, guess what? They're about to do that this year, now that they have a majority in the state assembly. And of course Jerry Brown will go along with that. So look for California being on this list next year. Probably right at the top.

One has to take into account the MEDIAN home value in the area being taxed. I can afford a $300,000 dollar house here in Texas and my taxes are $7900. Because the area has so many low paying jobs and there are so many poor, the median home price is $127,000 and that person would pay $3340. Back in Massachusetts I can't even afford the median home value of $344,000, but the taxes would be $4,100. Just about half what I pay here in Texas. Folks paying the median value in their respective areas pay about the same. Of course you have to add income tax and other taxes which is the reason I live in Texas. And a home with the median value where I live in Texas would be in a bad neighborhood with bad schools, terrible social services, poor neighbors etc. Fortunately, I don't need those social programs right now.

Most people, actually ALL people haven't a clue about owning property. In America it's practically impossible to get along without a car at some point in your life. Do you know that you never actually own your home.....OR your car? Let's look at the car title or lack of title in your possession first. What does it say? CERTIFICATE OF TITLE !...not 'title'. The original title is held in your state capital of the state you live in. You pay all these 'taxes" for the privilege of driving on public roads. Don't pay the fees....you don't drive the car. Now for those who are fortunate enough to have paid off their mortgages, look at your deed. You are a TENANT....I won't go into the details but you are NOT the owner. No mineral rights and in a lot of cases you have to "comply" with your neighborhood or historical society in order to live in YOUR house that you worked all you life to pay for. Think this is wrong..? Don't pay your taxes and see who REALLY owns the property. The government owns EVERYTHING.

Where is PA. My property tax is 12,073 per year. What the hell? This article is wrong. Of course they say median so maybe our median is low but my tax on my home is not cheap and I don't live in a mansion. Thus the reason our home is on market and we are looking to vacate PA for NC.

What I'd like to see is a list of the ten states with the highest school taxes in America. Here in Pennsylvania school taxes are going through the roof - unopposed because the school board cannot be voted down on tax increases by law! Talk about leaving the fox in charge of the hen house!!

only part of the story...there are also school taxes most cities will charge. In Amherst NY property taxes are about $3,000 for every $100,000 of assessed value and assessments are at 100%. So property taxes are 3%.

I pay 2.4% of the over-assessed value of my 1400 sqft Austin home, on 6900sqft lot with single carport and clapboard siding, or about $8000/year. Why isn't Texas shown on the list? The rate is higher and the tax is ridiculous. Oh, and the city just bought a for-profit medical school with homeowners' tax dollars, for which we will receive squat. This is Gov. Rick Perry's hometown. The clown for president that brags about low taxes. What is this, an election year, and all the wealthy news organizations want more stupid republicans?

While we may have high property taxes, we have no income tax or sales tax. It's also comforting to know that our state is one of the five lowest states for violent crime and one of the top for quality schools according to the latest statistics. One thing I have learned from travelling all around the world is that we are the top country for WHINERS. Pretty sad when you consider that we have enough money to make ourselves the fattest people in the world. Not to mention the money we spend making our athletes and celebrities billionaires - even the ones with no talent. I consider myself lucky to be in the USA and in NH.

@Musician... You do realize that is was the city council who are all Democrats and the voters who voted to fund the new medical school in Austin which will raise our property taxes even more. Austin is starting to act more like California, we want everything but are not smart enough to realize that it comes at a steep price.

These states for the most part have some of the top performing public schools in the country. They have lowest infant mortality rates and some of the healthiest constituents in the country--in fact, the New England states have lowest obesity rates. That's what the higher taxes are for. In states that pay much less in state taxes, you have correspondingly poorer performing public schools and high infant mortality rates, among other social ills. You get what you pay for and lower taxes typically mean a lower standard of living for those residents--except for the wealthy ones. States like Texas can get away with not paying income taxes, but you have the highest sale taxes--either way you have to get the funds from somewhere...

I do not know anybody who likes their taxes, whether income or real estate tax. Nothing that government provides is free. It all costs money. A few states like Alaska have oil money and so they have fewer state taxes, but someday even Alaska will stop getting the oil money and then they will have to figure a way to pay for their government.

Someone forgot to include the RED state of Florida in property taxes. Pay $35,000 on a house assessed at 1.8 million and the assessments are revised every January. Do you think that they go down....no chance!!! Also the sales tax in Pinellas county is 7% and they are talking about raising to 8% for bus service. I pay over $1500 dollars a year just for ambulance service which goes up as the property value increases. A family of 4 pays the same as a single person...This does not include what they bill the insurance company for an actual transport to a hospital. I paid less in NJ for a house assessed more than FL. Plus the schools down here are not the greatest. Look at their rating nation wide.

Unfortunately, if you are a taxpayer, regardless of if it is property taxes, income taxes, sales taxes, or taxes listed on every single monthly bill, and generally higher than the bill or service for the month is, there is one motto among the takers and taxers, sitting in those seats that allow them to take as much as they want, increase the taxes any time they wish, and also get to spend that revenue as they please, and that is "WHERE THAT TAX REVENUE CAME FROM, THERE IS ALWAYS MORE FOR THE TAKING AND FOR THE TAXING." And all they need to do, is write them right into anything they wish, and can devise, for us to pay for.

It is like the entitlements, and the subsidies, and everything else. Where the taxpayers can be listed on the dotted line to pay, it shall and will be done.

Once, we could boast about being the wealthiest country, but thanks to the reckless and outrageous spending sprees that have continued over the past 5-10 yrs, none of our state, city, country or DC leaders, have cared whether the money was there, or if it was going be as much as they hoped or figured, they spent it anyway.

And when they couldn't find more, they raided our pensions, our Soc. Sec., and other "funds" that were planned for other things. Never let it be said that when they decide that they need more, or want more, because they paid no heed to how much, where or on what, so long as they were the ones doling it out, and "funding" it to their own, there was NO EXPENSE TOO HIGH, AND NO AMOUNT TOO MUCH. Especially since WE are the ones of the hook to pay the bills, the borrowing and the debts off the "charge card". That is what we are for, "tax-payers", period. We only count when it is time to vote, and time to pay.

After that vote is tallied, we are nothing more than a dollar sign that can be taken and spent.

When it comes to property taxes, or any tax for that matter in my state of WA, there one general mindset among our govt bodies and those who do not pay taxes or pay property taxes, that is that "someone must pay". And if it comes to the schools, teacher's raises, "elected's" raises or more in their own bennies, union bennies for the higher paid members with the strongest union voices and bosses, like Boeings or 'teachers' , and any thing else the state, county or city wants, the property owners MUST foot the costs.

And when it can't be just raised, as so many usually are, then it comes to the "voters" to vote on. If it is something that would be shared equally among all citizens, it will usually fail. BUT, should it be deemed something a property owner will pay, it is 100% guaranteed to be passed, EVERY TIME. Which is why so many of us now, are close to losing homes that we have been paying for almost 30 yrs. My home is 104 yrs old, drafty and hasn't been remodeled or modified since 1959. It is only worth about $37-40,000.00 at the most. Yet is is "taxed assessed" at over $125-130,000.00 by the Assessor's office. During the meltdown of Wall St in 2008, when other states were seeing declines in the values and costs of homes, ours were going up. As was the assessments by the Assessor's office. When I called to ask why mine had went up almost $20,000, from just 6 mth prior, I was told that the revenue was needed, the coffers were empty, and since they were needing the money, our taxes had to go up, to fill the coffers. I was told that "someone" had to see that there was money there for the county, and that was the property owners, who else?

So, we all know that no matter what we are promised, no matter what we are told, the money will come from taxpayers. And, preferrably the "property owner", because those that don't own property are as free with leaving the "owners" to pay for the wants, wishes and needs of the schools, cities, states and counties, and whomever else is on the list, when they don't have to pay.

It is like the entitlements and subsidies rolls, "someone" has to pay the bills and debts, and those are the ones who are working and paying for everything and anything we are told to. It isn't our money, and hasn't been for decades. Now, every way possible there is to gain more tax revenue, will be devised or added to everything, so that more comes in to spend.

As I said, there is one motto in govt, and that is that "There is ALWAYS MORE to take, tax, and to spend. And all we need do, is make the taxpayers accountable, responsible, and most important of all, necessary to see that the money is paid, the coffers are filled, and the hands waiting to recieve the "promised funding, grant, reward, catering to, pay back, raise, bennie, etc" will indeed, be given their "fair share" and "reap the rewards" of the hard working, accountable and responsible taxpayers money. After all, someone must pay those bills, debts, costs, prices, fees, fines, charges, taxes, penalties, entitlements, subsidies and make up whatever revenue is sent and spent in other countries, that our leaders are "nation building" in, and sending our jobs and businesses to by over taxing and over regulating them right out of this country, to a place more friendly.

Massachusetts has no county governments, and even when we did, the tax rate was not set by them. We pay taxes to our town or city. The rate is 1.4% in my town, and I get great services. Tired of everyone always complaining about this state.

I live in northeastern Massachusetts and my annual property tax bill is $11,650 on a home valued at $475K. The sales tax in this state is 6.25% and the income tax rate is 5.3%. In all fairness, property taxes rates are imposed by the local city or town and vary tremendously from community to community based on need. I am OUT OF HERE very shortly and heading to sunny Palm Beach County.

This article is misleading in that many states have property tax rates that are at least as high as the percentages shown for these ten states...Take Texas for example. the property tax rates in that state are enough to take your breath away. The millage rate in almost every densely populated county in the state are much, much higher than the rates paid in any of the ten states that are the subject of this article. In Tarrant, Dallas, Travis and Harris County the mill rate is in excess of 3%. Meaning that if you own a home with a tax assessed value of $200,000 you are paying $6,000 a year in property taxes. This is a dirty little secret that the right-wingers in Texas don't like to talk about when they start going on and on about the "Texas Miracle" but it's a fact!

The property tax rates indicated above for Massachusetts and Alaska really aren't that high when compared with many states....a mill rate of 1% is probably consistent with most states in fact. That's about what you wold pay in Oregon or Washington if you were living in one of the urban counties where the majority of the population is located....

It seems apparent that once again the Motley Fool folks have overstepped their knowledge boundaries!